Pickerel vs Walleye: Setting the Record Straight

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So, what’s all this about the “Canadian pickerel” really being a “walleye?” Are we talking about the same fish having two names? For generations, when Americans have said “It is a walleye,” we Canadians have—sometimes defiantly—responded, “We call it pickerel in Canada; Americans call it walleye.” Have we been wrong all these years? Well, the answer is yes.

northernwilds.com

Pickerel vs Walleye: Setting the Record Straight

So, what’s all this about the “Canadian pickerel” really being a “walleye?” Are we talking about the same fish having two names? For generations, when Americans have said “It is a walleye,” we Canadians have—sometimes defiantly—responded, “We call it pickerel in Canada; Americans call it...
northernwilds.com northernwilds.com

Your opinions appreciated.

Pt Burwell Pickerel Tournament
Annual Great Erie Salmon & Pickerel Hunt

The Algonac Lions Pickerel Tournament (a Michigan Walleye Tournament)

2019 Smallmouth Bass and Chain Pickerel Tournament (from Nova Scotia)
14th Annual Pickerel Tournament (from Nova Scotia)
 
we had this discussion on here many times..

its the newer fishermen and the ones that haven't fished outside the great lakes that don't know what a pickeral is..
the shortform nickname in the south is eyes..
go up north to a fish camp and you will hear the locals call them pickeral...dore is another name..
 
ya and they come in yellow, black, green, blue, brown and white... :)

nice to read the fishing tournaments are called pickeral..:p
 
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I learned they were walleye when I was set straight by an American friend who fished with us up in northern Ontario when I was 16. Called them by the right name ever since. ?
 
I won a bottle of wine on this one... In the great lakes there is only Pickerel. Yes I realize that in all the stores/restaurants they call it a walleye dinner/fillet but if you read the article...you draw your own conclusions. Further to this if you look at any of the game fishing posting there is no mention of walleye on the board.

Difference Between Walleye and Pickerel

Walleye vs Pickerel A walleye is sometimes called a pickerel, particularly in English-speaking parts of Canada, but in fact, the walleye and the pickerel are not at all related. However, both are members of the
www.differencebetween.net www.differencebetween.net
 
Northern Ontario they are pickerel...walleye is name they give the American tourist worth money coming. Whole the scientific definition is walleye pickerel is a Canadian name and use it with pride
 
I remember watching Going Fishing tv way back now when Daryl Chronzy was the star of the show.He said Canadians got it wrong by calling walleye pickerel and the Americans had it right calling them walleye.Just kinda remember that part of the show.Anyway i always thought Cronzy would make one hell of a natural resource minister back in the day.
 
In all my travels across this great country, from the NWT, to BC through to Quebec, the ONLY place I have ever heard them called Pickeral (pickerel) is here in Ontario. Everywhere else I've been, they're called walleye, (unless the person you're speaking to is from Ontario) and the reason is, a true pickeral (pickerel) looks more like a pike or a muskie than it does the walleye.

"Pickerel, common name for 3 closely related carnivorous, soft-rayed freshwater fishes in the pike family (Esocidae). In parts of Canada, the name is applied, erroneously, to the walleye. The name is derived from an English diminutive of pike. Pickerel occur naturally only in eastern N America. The group consists of 2 species: Esox niger, chain pickerel; E. americanus, divisible into 2 forms, redfin pickerel, which grows to 35 cm, and the slightly smaller grass pickerel. In Canada, 1 or more species occur in limited portions of the country from southern NS to Ontario, inhabiting smaller, warm waters (eg, ponds, small streams, bays of lakes). Only the chain pickerel, growing to about 50 cm long and 1.4 kg, is of any consequence as a sport fish. "

1580079863583.png

WALLEYE

1580079929941.png

Walleye vs Sauger

1580079992724.png

Likewise, as I've shared before, there is also a difference between a Silver/White Bass and a White Perch.

1580080129422.png
Above is the Silver?White Bass.
  • Notice the front dorsal fin is shorter than the rear dorsal fin.
  • Notice the slope from the front dorsal fin to the eyes/head gradual
  • dark spots in horizontal lines, often faint and irregularsecond anal spine distinctly shorter than third
  • length: 20-30 centimetres (8-12 inches)
Below is the White Perch.
  • Notice the front Dorsal fin is the same size or larger than the rear dorsal fin.
  • Notice the slope from the front dorsal fin to the eyes/head is sharper
  • colour variable with no obvious spots or stripessecond and third anal spine roughly equal in length
  • length: 15-25 centimetres (6-10 inches)
1580080211091.png
 
PICKEREL FILLETS by LB


PICKEREL FILLETS by LB FRESH


PICKEREL FILLETS by LB FRESH


575680-BC
PICKEREL FILLETS by LB FRESH


$20.20

Wild. Product of Ontario, the fresh Pickerel Fillets, also known as Walleye, is a great fresh water product what is one of the most popular Canadian freshwater species available commercially.By LB.
 
I guess, when it's all said and done tho, whether you call a perch "one of those elusive mythical creatures," whether you call a walleye a walleye or you call it a pickerel, (and everyone knows what you're talking about) whether it's a white perch or a silver bass, the most important thing to remember is, the only thing that really matters.................. is that you call it LUNCH.?;)
 
I always assumed it was some type of marketing game played by restaurants and grocery stores. Pickerel sounds tasty.. Walleye not so much. I personally call them walleye or eyes. However whenever I ask friends if they want some fish, I say Pickerel.. Everyone is always eager for a bag of pickerel lol.
 
I still call them pickerel within ear shot of my older relatives, in fear of getting hit upside the head if I dared calling them the dreaded "w" word!

Great read brother. It has been too long since our last meeting, we need to get together for a coffee one of these weekends to have a chat before I head south to fish since the ice season has never come to be round our neck of the woods.
 
Twister said:
Large + small mouth sunfish then? Cause they ain't a bass.
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They are sunfish !! Embrace local names ...in Quebec where i fish they are speckled trout. Northen Ontario they are brook trout.. are they king salmon or chinook? I didnt even know pike are called Jack's in Alberta.. who cares? They are pickerel in the majority of lakes I fish .. the only reason you even hear walleye is to please the Americans with the big wallets
 
jerk bait said:
They are sunfish !! Embrace local names ...in Quebec where i fish they are speckled trout. Northen Ontario they are brook trout.. are they king salmon or chinook? I didnt even know pike are called Jack's in Alberta.. who cares? They are pickerel in the majority of lakes I fish .. the only reason you even hear walleye is to please the Americans with the big wallets
Click to expand...
I call them by their proper name walleye and I'm not an American nor do I have a big wallet. :giggle:
 
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